Barriers
by Maria2
Summary: A sort of alternate ending for "Shattered". J/C


Title: Barriers  
Author: Maria  
Author's Notes: Okay this is my first Star Trek fan fic, so please please review it but  
don't be too harsh! Honest but not harsh. (There you go, a challenge for you!)  
  
Spoiler Warnings: Shattered, some for The Caretaker.   
  
Summary: A sort of alternate ending for "Shattered." Not very alternate though.   
Mainly getting some of Janeway/Chakotay's thoughts in. That's always fun!  
  
Disclaimer: Paramount owns everything. The only thing that's mine is the time  
that's gone into this fic (actually that probably belongs to revision, but oh well :) )   
--------  
  
'Kathryn, he's the captain of the Maquis ship. Your assignment is to arrest him and  
his crew and take them back for the Federation to stand trial.' Kathryn Janeway  
mentally reminded herself whilst walking with Chakotay towards the warp core in the  
engineering section of this brand new ship of hers.   
  
'But look at all you've seen today. I think it goes without saying that if I ever do get  
him back to Starfleet it's not going to be to put him on trial' Janeway argued with  
herself.   
  
'And you just have to know, don't you. Curiosity was always your biggest flaw.' The  
captain side of her was still interested in upholding as much of the Temporal Prime  
Directive as possible.   
  
'I'm a scientist...and a Starfleet Captain, curiosity isn't a flaw. It's a survival  
mechanism. And besides if the Borg drone's plan works, I wouldn't remember any of  
this, so won't be risking the timeline.' Janeway rationalised with herself, trying to  
justify her next question. 'Damn it Kathryn, just ask him already.'   
  
"Mind if I ask you one last question?" She began rather tentatively.  
  
"Will I have to break the temporal Prime directive to answer it?" Chakotay  
responded to her question with a question, not sure if he could answer anymore of  
Kathryn's questions.  
  
"Maybe......just a little" she quipped, trying to lighten the mood a little. By this time  
they had reached the warp core. 'The glow of the core reinforces his ruggedly  
handsome features...' she stopped herself in mid thought. 'Mark!' She looked up to  
see him waiting for her to continue so she did whilst fidgeting with her hands, not  
daring to look him in the eye. Hesitationancy, embarrassment and self doubt weren't  
normal Janeway emotions, but she was making an exception. "For two people who  
started off as enemies, it seems we get to know each other pretty well. So I've been  
wondering just how close to we get?"  
  
Chakotay paused for a second, considering how best to answer her query. 'She's  
definitely my best friend. I trust her with my life but then she's also my captain.   
trusting her with my life is just a part of the job. The question is do I trust her with  
my heart?' In a sudden flash of clarity, the answer came to him. He gave a silent  
prayer to whichever deity was listening. And then moved closer to Janeway. His lips  
paused over hers. He could feel her warm breath. It left his skin tingling with desire.   
He closed the gap between them even more, noticing that Kathryn, the object of his  
love and desire, wasn't moving back and hadn't even flinched. He whispered her  
name and lightly run his hand over her cheek, in the most gentle of caresses.  
  
Janeway was shattered in two again. There was the Starfleet Captain, the one who  
was engaged to Mark. The one who was so sure she was in love, and that it was real.   
The one who had been with her 'true love' only a few days ago.  
  
But there was also the human. The one who could feel her companions hands  
exploring the contours of her face. The one who felt both excited and natural. This  
felt right. She had always been something of a control freak but what she was feeling  
wasn't something she could control. She was powerless to resist. Maybe this is what  
we are in the future. Maybe he's just answering my question. Maybe he's answering  
with the answer I wanted.   
  
Chakotay could see the confusion flutter across the face of the woman he'd given his  
heart to along time ago without even releasing. And before the confusion could cause  
either her or him to reconsider he kissed her. Full on. Hard. The gentleness of his  
earlier caress forgotten. He wanted her passionately, desperately, intensely. He  
needed her. She completed him. Yet from somewhere deep inside him, he heard a  
soft but insistent voice that said this was the only time he could ever have with her.  
  
Surely enough, Janeway pulled away from him, looking totally horrified. "Mr.  
Chakotay, I don't know what relationship we have, or you think we have a million  
years from now. At the minute I'm engaged and in love" she stated with as much  
'Captain' in her voice as she could manage. ".......with Mark" She added as an  
afterthought, not sure if it was to convince Chakotay or herself.  
  
"Right of course Captain. I'm sorry I shouldn't have presumed. I guess there are  
some barriers we never cross." Chakotay said trying, very hard, to keep his voice  
from trembling.  
  
"See you in the future." Janeway replied before leaving for the bridge and sincerely  
hoping that it was a future where they could live happily ever after, but she doubted it.  
  
----------  
Chakotay had come back to his own time and Voyager is no longer in 37 different  
time zones. Janeway and Chakotay are discussing the future.  
  
"Sounds a lot like the future to me." Chakotay replied thinking that it was very  
probable that in a few years they would both be dead. Well at least Naomi implied  
that we died together.  
  
"Any predictions?" Janeway asked, hoping he would tell her something. 'Something  
awful must have happened for him to not even give me any clues. He knows how  
much I hate time travel, he wouldn't leave me completely in the dark.'   
  
"Only that in a few minutes this bottle will be empty." Chakotay was adamant to not  
break the Temporal Prime Directive. 'Hey, when did I become Starfleet's golden  
haired boy?'   
  
"Well, maybe you'd better go to the Cargo bay and grab another."  
  
"How did you know that's where I keep it?"  
  
"I can't tell you." Janeway said, enjoying her playful revenge.  
  
"Why not?" Chakotay asked.  
  
"Temporal Prime Directive!" Janeway said, lovingly teasing him.  
  
Chakotay let this sink in for a while and then started laughing. Kathryn joined him.   
But Chakotay laughed not only because of the joke but because he realised that  
whatever happened in the future, the present was good. He was enjoying his favourite  
drink with the person he valued more than life itself. Okay maybe there are some  
barriers they'd never cross. But there are plenty that they've left way behind.  
  
THE END 


End file.
